Acne Scarring Before and After

March 9, 2012

Acne scars (scarring) is the result after having severe acne or pimples, usually from adolescence. So, first you have zits and then you suffer again by having to deal with the marks that are left on your body. Acne scars can appear on your face, shoulders and chest and anywhere else you’ve had inflammation of the dermis due to teenage acne. Sometimes the scarring can disappear on its own and this can take anywhere between a month to a year. Unfortunately though, most pimple scarring is permanent. It doesn’t look very attractive, especially on women. Sometimes they can make men look more masculine or give them character (see Ray Liotta as an example). Most of us aren’t lucky enough to have scarring serve us so well and the crater face appearance can even make you look scary.

Luckily, there are lots of ways to eliminate these nasty looking marks. These can range from medium treatments such as the Blue Peel to more invasive procedures such as Co2 Laser. Milder procedures like microdermabrasion don’t really work that well for acne scars. If you don’t want to be taking layers off, then you can add volume to the scars with dermal fillers and this will even out your skin’s text_imageure. It may not be permanent though because most injectable fillers only last about a year.

Before and after photo

Photo #1

Allan gets Affirm Laser for acne scarring. As you can see in the after photo it has helped a great deal. Most of the acne is now gone and the scars have been removed. The after photo was taken a week and a half after the treatment.

Causes of acne scarring

Scars are purely a result of injuries or wounds, they are a normal part of the skins healing process. It’s when the layer of our skin known as the dermis is damaged scars form. Acne scars develop mainly from inflamed lesions such as a cyst, pustule or papule. Blemishes inflame as a result of pores or follicles are filled with too much oil (sebum), bacteria or dead skin. A pore is filled so much breaking in the follicle wall. This is OK if it happens near the surface but it’s serious when it happens deep below the skin especially in the dermis damaging healthy skin tissue and possible producing a scar later on. The skin tries to repair itself by forming collagen fibers which strengthen and flex the skin but the problem is this repair almost never ends up looking as it used to. The more inflammation of your skin the more of a chance there will be scars left over. Acne scars are not considered to be scars at all but a result of post inflammatory hyperpigmentation or PIH.

Preventing scars

Attempt to lower the amount of inflammation breakouts to your best ability. If you’re acne is getting really bad see a dermatologist to try get it under control. Definitely don’t squeeze pimples as this will spread the bacteria on your face. Popping them can push bacteria deeper into the skin like the dermis increasing the likelihood of further infection worsening the amount of inflammation. Do not pick at scars either as scabs are the skin’s natural bandages protecting the skin beneath. Be aware no matter how careful you may try be you may still be unfortunate enough to develop acne scars.

Before treatment

Prior to having any sort of cosmetic surgery treatment for your acne scars you should do as much research on the Internet about it as possible. You can easily see a doctor or cosmetic physician about the problem but it is always a good idea to be knowledgeable and have the basic facts of the different types of treatments available.

It would be best to wait until you’re not suffering from a breakout before treating scars as the treatment may have negative effects. If you wish to know more about treatments for acne scars we have provided a “Related procedures” section below which link to all the cosmetic surgery procedures available to assist you, you may spend as much time as you wish researching each and every one of them as we’ve provided plenty of information about each.

Risks, side effects & complications

There are known to be over 30 various cosmetic surgery procedures to exist for acne scars today. We have provided a list below in the “Related procedures” section. All these procedures have different risks and complications associated with them. Most of the procedures listed below do not just treat acne scars but other problems so there will be a bonus payoff. You can see a cosmetic surgeon or dermatologist who can recommend an acne scar treatment for you or you have to option of doing the research yourself which is more rewarding and you can choose one you’re comfortable with, this can save you money on consultation costs.

Recovery time

Below is a list of several different procedures which treat acne scars and associated recovery times. For more procedures and recovery times see further procedures in the “Related procedures” section further down the page.

Affirm laser – Usually one week for eat 20 to 30 minute treatment.

Fraxel laser – Patients usually fully heal within 7 days.

Collagen injections – No recovery time needed

ArteFill (permanent dermal filler) – Minimal, the worst you are expected to get is itchy skin for 2 days.

After surgery

Hopefully after treatment your acne scars will have improved no matter which procedure you decided to take. Be careful if the first thing you tried doesn’t work that you give your skin time to properly recover before trying anything else and make sure you advise your cosmetic surgeon or dermatologist of the treatments you’ve already tried.

Cost

Below is a list of a few procedure costs associated with acne scarring. For more information on treatment costs check the “Related procedures” section down the bottom of the page.

Evolence – The average cost of Evolence is around $970.

TCA peels – Around $280.

SmartXide – Generally close to $1,600.

Silikon 1000 – Usually no more than $1,000.

Opinions

ArteFill is what I had done a few weeks ago to permanently fill in the scars from acne. The injections stung a little but I sat through it knowing it’s going to be a little better and I must say I was amazed by the results the surgeon promised me. Now the skin on my cheeks is smooth again like it used to be in my early teens. Every one of my close friends has noticed how good my face looks now and they all wanted to know how I did it. I sure am not ashamed to had to have gone to an cosmetic physician to help me with my problem. Rather I’m proud that I made the choice because my face is thanking me for it right now. God bless the people who invented ArteFill. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who has bumps caused from acne scarring. I don’t get sad when looking into a mirror anymore. So happy lol.

Submitted by Craig on 23rd of March, 2012.

YouTube video

The YouTube video above shows a lady explaining how acne form on human skin and the different types of skin layers. She goes on to recommend a few basic creams which will help the different layer of skin heal and reform new collagen cells and break down the scar tissue. She also recommends a few peels but not others because they don’t work on the deeper layers of the skin.

More before and after photos

Photo #2

Fernando gets collagen injections in the side of his face to alleviate acne scarring. The collagen injections have smoothed out the acne scars and bumps on his face caused by acne. The after photo was take the day after the injections were administered.

Photo #3

Vanessa had dermabrasion treatment for her acne scars. Most of the scars as you can see have now vanished. There is very little dermabrasion can’t do to make a persons face look much younger and youthful. The after photo was shot two weeks following the treatment.

Photo #4

Amie got Fraxel laser treatment to treat her acne scars. There is a noticeable change between the before and after photos. The after photo was taken ten days following the treatment in New York.

Photo #5

Joanne had a MiXto laser treatment to treat her acne scars. The after photo was taken a week later. As you can see there was a positive effect from the laser with most of her severe acne now gone.

Photo #6

Lelah had a chemical peel to rid her of her acne. She is hoping that it won’t come back so she doesn’t have to have the treatment again but things are looking good so far. The after shot was taken two weeks following the chemical peel.

Photo #7

Max had dermal fillers administered to fill in his acne scars. They did a good job but his scars are pretty severe and it wasn’t able to fix all of them. Max is still happy with the treatment. The after photo was taken four days after the fillers were injected.

Photo #8

Diana chose to have ArteFill a permanent filler injected into her cheeks to hide her acne scars and fill in those unsightly bumps. The after shot was taken three days following the injections.

Photo #9

Boris had Juvederm injections to the side of his face and cheeks to hide the fact that he has acne bumps and scars. The treatment did a great job in hiding these imperfections. Boris is very happy with the treatment and says he would go through it again if he had to. The after shot was taken two days after Juvederm was injected.

Photo #10

Brent had Perlane to remove the acne from his face. As you can see from the after photo which was taken a week later, the treatment was a success and there is almost no visible trace of acne now.

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